The Sky over the Mornington Peninsula — January 2001
Highlights this month
- 4ThuQuadrantids meteor shower peaks (up to 110/hr). A bright 63% Moon interferes badly this year.
- 6SatThe Moon passes Saturn — 2° apart. (1:22pm)
- 7SunThe Moon passes Jupiter — 3° apart. (2:05am)
- 17WedVenus at greatest evening elongation (47° from the Sun, mag −4.4) — best evening apparition. (6:45pm)
- 18ThuThe Moon passes Mars — 3° apart. (9:35am)
- 26FriJupiter is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (12:34am)
- 26FriSaturn is stationary — resumes direct (eastward) motion. (1:07am)
- 26FriNeptune in superior conjunction with the Sun — lost in the glare. (2:40pm)
- 29MonMercury at greatest evening elongation (18° from the Sun, mag −0.6) — best evening apparition. (12:28am)
Sun & twilight
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Day length | Astro. dark begins | ends |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1 | 6:00am | 8:46pm | 14h 47m | 10:42pm | 4:04am |
| Tue 10 | 6:08am | 8:46pm | 14h 38m | 10:39pm | 4:15am |
| Fri 20 | 6:19am | 8:43pm | 14h 24m | 10:31pm | 4:30am |
| Tue 31 | 6:31am | 8:35pm | 14h 04m | 10:18pm | 4:48am |
Days shorten by about 43 minutes over the month.
The Moon
- First QuarterWed 3, 9:41am
- Full Moon SupermoonWed 10, 7:27am
- Last QuarterTue 16, 11:30pm
- New MoonThu 25, 12:12am
Perigee 10 Jan (357,200 km) · Apogee 25 Jan (406,300 km)
The planets
Rise/set for mid-month at The Briars.
| Planet | In | Mag | Rise | Transit | Set | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | Cap | −1.0 | 7:11am | 2:23pm | 9:34pm | Hidden |
| Venus | Aqr | −4.4 | 10:09am | 4:36pm | 11:02pm | Evening |
| Mars | Lib | 1.2 | 1:36am | 8:26am | 3:16pm | Morning |
| Jupiter | Tau | −2.4 | 4:41pm | 9:38pm | 2:38am | Evening |
| Saturn | Tau | −0.1 | 4:02pm | 9:09pm | 2:21am | Evening |
| Uranus | Cap | 5.9 | 8:16am | 3:09pm | 10:02pm | Hidden |
| Neptune | Cap | 8.0 | 7:10am | 2:14pm | 9:18pm | Hidden |
Meteor showers
- Quadrantids — peaks 4 January, radiant in Boötes (up to 110/hr). Radiant stays below the horizon from Victoria — essentially a no-show this far south. A bright 63% Moon interferes badly this year.
The solar system — January 2001
Evening sky Morning sky Up much of the night Lost in the Sun’s glare
Open the full interactive orrery ↗ — fast-forward, pick any date, toggle the Moon and more.
Looking for an earlier month? Browse all past monthly guides →
Generated automatically from the MPAS sky engine on 15 August 2026.